SEEKING INCOME: Dottie Moyer sits on a road median island Monday near the Laguna Hills Mall. She calls the new ordinance “homeless-bashing.” KENDRA MARR, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

LAGUNA HILLS - Pedestrians here soon will have to watch their step.

The City Council on Tuesday night voted 5-0 to prohibit "stepping, standing, sitting or lying" on the median islands of city roadways, preventing people from using the dividers as sidewalks or places from which to solicit drivers.

While other cities ban standing in the street, Laguna Hills is one of only a handful of Orange County cities to specifically target the medians.

The ordinance is a response to cars slowing or stopping for people in the medians. Three accidents in the past two years - all rear-end collisions - were blamed on such conduct, according to city reports. Sheriff's deputies have seen more people on the medians, and pedestrians are trampling landscaping.

"The bottom line is, the median is in a major roadway, and it's dangerous," said Lt. Steve Doan, the city's chief of police services. "The motoring public doesn't expect someone to be out there, and it's even more dangerous for people standing out there."

Doan pointed to a fatal accident last weekend in which a car ran over the median on Paseo de Valencia.

Dottie Moyer, who says she is homeless, solicits from a chair on medians in Laguna Hills. She said the ordinance is harassment.

"They're trying to take away our freedoms, what America is all about," said Moyer, whose sign describes her as disabled. "This is homeless-bashing."

The generosity during the upcoming holiday season is particularly important for the homeless, Moyer said.

"I got to survive," she said.

People rarely get hurt soliciting on medians, said Dwight Smith, who runs Isaiah House, a Santa Ana homeless shelter. He said the city should address more prevalent driving distractions, such as cell-phone use and billboards.

"The most effective place to beg is when you're on foot and the person is in their car," he said. "They don't feel as threatened when they're surrounded by the safety of their car and you're on the street with a cardboard sign."

The city will educate residents and drivers about the ordinance. Violations could result in misdemeanor charges.

Mayor Randal Bressette said he hopes other cities will use Laguna Hills as a model.

"At least motorists will have the opportunity to move out of the flow of traffic to make a contribution, instead of blocking traffic," he said.

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